Love Under Pretenses | Winrina

17.

It was already 7:30 in the morning, and I had slipped into my favorite formal pink dress again. When it comes to fashion, my world revolves around three colors only, pink, black, and white and everything has to be formal. I just feel like I shine brighter in a dress than in a suit.

After finishing my hair and makeup, I received a text from Minjeong saying she was outside. So, I quickly grabbed everything I needed for the office.

As I opened the door, I spotted Dad and Mom at the door, peering through our glass wall, trying to figure out whose car was parked outside.

"I'm leaving now," I called out as I descended the stairs toward the door.

"Whose car is that? Why is it parked outside our gate? And why don’t you have your keys?" Dad bombarded me with questions, prompting me to roll my eyes at him.

"My girlfriend, obviously. She came to pick me up so we can go to work together." I said this with a raised eyebrow, and both of them furrowed their brows in confusion

"What?! Where did she get that car?! Don't tell me you spent a ton of money just to buy that gold digger a fancy car!"

"Why do you care so much, Dad!? It's my money!"

"I don’t care! Have you lost your mind because of that fucking girl?!" Dad yelled, and I could feel my patience slipping away.

Mom quickly noticed that I was about to explode because of Dad’s comments, so she stepped in front of us and faced him.

"Honey, just relax. It's early, and don’t stress our daughter out. We can talk about this later when she’s not busy," she said sweetly, which made Dad calm down a bit, but he still glared at me.

I stared at Mom, surprised to see her standing up to Dad like this, trying to keep him from being so strict and angry with me.

"Jimin, you should go. Minjeong's been waiting for you. I’ll deal with your dad," Mom said, and my heart warmed at her words.

Is this really happening? My mom is letting me go with Minjeong?

Just then, my phone vibrated with a text, and I knew it was Minjeong. Even though we were inside, she could sense that we were arguing again because of the glass wall.

"Alright, we're leaving," I said to Mom without even glancing at Dad again.

"You good?" Minjeong asked as I hopped into her new car.

"Why? Do I look like I'm not?" I shot back, still carrying the irritation from earlier.

"Chill out! You’re getting all grumpy over a simple question. Did you and your dad argue again because of me? I told you, Jimin, you really don’t have to—"

"Just shut it, Minjeong. I willingly bought you that car for us, and about Dad—just forget him. He's not worth it" I replied, and she stared at me for a moment before nodding and starting the engine.

A FEW MOMENTS LATER

"Were you the ones I saw in the parking lot? Did you come here together?" Giselle asked, fiddling with her laptop at my desk.

"Yep, we came together," I said casually.

"Oh? Whose car are you driving? Last I checked, you didn’t have a ride like that. It can’t be Minj—"

"It’s Minjeong’s car, and she drove us here. I bought it for her," I interrupted, and Giselle’s eyes widened in surprise before she gave me a teasing look.

"Stop it! I did that just to make our little act look more realistic," I added, rolling my eyes at her wild imagination.

"Oh, Miss Yu, I almost forgot to remind you. Here’s your schedule for next week," Minjeong chimed in, handing me the iPad with my agenda on it.

I raised an eyebrow at what I saw. "Wait, I have a meeting abroad?"

"You have a meeting abroad next week?" Giselle leaned in to peek at the screen, and I nodded.

"What country is it in?" I asked Minjeong, intrigued.

"Barcelona, Spain," she replied, and Giselle squealed so loudly.

"Barcelona?! That’s my dream destination! Jimin can I come with you? Please?!" Giselle begged, practically bouncing on her seat.

"Silly! Of course, I’ll take you with me. I need you there since you’re one of the trusted ones in the company," I said, grinning, and she let out another excited squeal.

Then I turned to Minjeong, who looked shocked by my sudden attention.

"You’re coming with me too," I said, and her eyes widened even more.

"What? Why? I can’t afford that—"

"Who said you’d have to pay? I’ll cover everything, including the hotel for the three of us and anyone else I need to bring along. You’re my assistant, remember?" I clarified, and she just stared at me, mouth agape, before finally nodding.

"O-okay, I’ll go, Miss Yu," she said, trying to sound all formal, but I could see the excitement in her eyes.

"Oh my gosh! I can’t wait! I’m going shopping tomorrow to get some new outfits for Barcelona and to take tons of pictures!" Giselle exclaimed, her eyes sparkling.

I shot her a playful look. "Just a reminder, Giselle, we’re going there for a meeting and an event, not a fashion show"

"Whatever!"